The concept of a flexible tubular pipe including a layer of reinforcement comprising carbon filaments is already known. Reference may be made to document FR2776358 describing such a tubular pipe. The carbon filaments or carbon composite sections in effect have excellent mechanical properties in tension, substantially twice that of steel wires and in addition to this they are comparatively very much lighter. As off-shore oil production is taking place at increasingly greater depths, for example beyond 3000 m, the total weight of the flexible tubular pipe becomes increasingly greater, and because of this the means for supporting it, essentially buoys, become increasingly larger and more costly.
In the case of conventional flexible tubular pipes most steel armor wires are wound helically and simultaneously with a long pitch around a tubular core to produce a layer of armor wires. These wires are flat and are inclined at an angle of for example between 20° and 60° to the axis of the flexible pipe. From 40 to 90 wires for example can thus be wound simultaneously around the tubular core. The latter comprises a leaktight sheath made of polymer material and a layer of armor wire wound around the leaktight sheath with a short pitch so that the pipe can withstand the radial pressure exerted by the petroleum fluid transported. In addition to this a second layer of armor wires is wound around the first layer in the opposite direction.
The armor wires are fitted by means of an assembly comprising a supporting wheel which has a central recess to allow the tubular core to pass through the said wheel. The latter includes bobbins storing a plurality of armor wires and a plurality of guide assemblies mounted around the said central recess. The tubular core and the wheel are then drawn along simultaneously, the tubular core through the central recess and the wheel rotating around the tubular core so as to wind the armor wires on the cores helically with a long pitch, while each of the said armor wires is drawn in translation through the guide assemblies. The armor wires thus extend between the guide assemblies and the tubular core respectively, causing the armor wire to flex. Reference will be made to document WO2010/012897 which describes such a conventional machine.